The possibility of a women's pro basketball league will be
on the NBA Board of Governors' agenda when they meet today in New
York. It is unlikely a league would begin before '97, but last
week in Paris, Commissioner David Stern said if the NBA got
involved, it would be in a "substantial way." In February,
organizers of the American Basketball League announced they would
begin a 40-game season in eight cities and include U.S. Team
players Jennifer Azzi, Lisa Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes
(Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 4/23).
FANDEMONIUM: A record number of 20,513,218 fans attended
NBA games in '95-96, the 11th time in the past 13 seasons the
league has established a new single-season attendance mark.
Average attendance of 17,252 was also up from 16,727 a year ago.
The NBA played to 92.4% capacity in '95-96, based on an average
arena capacity of 18,665 (NBA).
THEY WILL BE HEARD: Five hearing-impaired fans have filed a
lawsuit against the NBA in a San Antonio federal court,
contending the league discriminates against them by failing to
provide captioning services at games, an omission they believe is
a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The FORT
WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM reports the plaintiffs want captions
displaying game commentary, announcements and officials' calls on
giant TV arenas in all NBA sports arenas. The lawsuit, filed
against the Spurs and the Alomodome as well as the league, seeks
only the money needed to cover legal fees. NHL, NFL and MLB
franchises were also notified they could face similar lawsuits
(Carlos Sanchez, FT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 4/24).
